plantbrain
Expert
- Joined
- 2 Aug 2007
- Messages
- 1,938
I just returned from a professional meeting of the APMS in WI. I listened to a UK researcher discussing how nasty many of the UK's streams and aquatic plant issues are.
Seems most just like to study and look at weeds in the UK, where in the USA, we go out and actually kill them.
The UK is really highly limited with respect to use of herbicides.
We have long involved processes in the US to use them with the EPA for environmental impacts and also several other state agencies(CA particularly).
It's really sad that they would rather do nothing and allow a weed to take over, crowd out and kill native species. There is insane resistance to the use of an approve chemical to kill the weeds, but nutrients, sewage, development, lawn use of herbicides and pesticides(all of which end up in the streams and ground water) seem to be overlooked curiously.
The herbicides used specifically for aquatic weeds are specific and breakdown, generally into CO2 and water by bacteria in time. Some such as Fluidone are 4000X less toxic than caffeine, tea time anyone? Many of the newer ones are used in the parts per Billion ranges. They are also only used as one tool in the management. They are also only used to control or eradicate the weeds, and once gone, the herbicide is no longer used.
The weeds on the other hand are self replicating and continue to grow and expand, they only get worse if you chose to do nothing. Rapid control and eradication is temporary.
I myself had very strong opinions about herbicide use for water, however, I know a lot about it these days.
I focus on killing sediment propagules without herbicides. This is due to the registration and long involved process and cost for a new tool if a chemical is used. So chemicals are very effective and safe when used correctly. Most mechanical cutters simply fragment and spread the aquatic weeds(think of 200000 bits of Penny wort everywhere!), they make the problem even worse.
There are few if any import laws for the aquatic plants also, we have laws in place here, AU has even more as well as NZ.
Big challenge there in the UK to control aquatic weeds I'd say.
The public preception of herbicides used for this is a huge stumbling block.
Regards,
Tom Barr
Seems most just like to study and look at weeds in the UK, where in the USA, we go out and actually kill them.
The UK is really highly limited with respect to use of herbicides.
We have long involved processes in the US to use them with the EPA for environmental impacts and also several other state agencies(CA particularly).
It's really sad that they would rather do nothing and allow a weed to take over, crowd out and kill native species. There is insane resistance to the use of an approve chemical to kill the weeds, but nutrients, sewage, development, lawn use of herbicides and pesticides(all of which end up in the streams and ground water) seem to be overlooked curiously.
The herbicides used specifically for aquatic weeds are specific and breakdown, generally into CO2 and water by bacteria in time. Some such as Fluidone are 4000X less toxic than caffeine, tea time anyone? Many of the newer ones are used in the parts per Billion ranges. They are also only used as one tool in the management. They are also only used to control or eradicate the weeds, and once gone, the herbicide is no longer used.
The weeds on the other hand are self replicating and continue to grow and expand, they only get worse if you chose to do nothing. Rapid control and eradication is temporary.
I myself had very strong opinions about herbicide use for water, however, I know a lot about it these days.
I focus on killing sediment propagules without herbicides. This is due to the registration and long involved process and cost for a new tool if a chemical is used. So chemicals are very effective and safe when used correctly. Most mechanical cutters simply fragment and spread the aquatic weeds(think of 200000 bits of Penny wort everywhere!), they make the problem even worse.
There are few if any import laws for the aquatic plants also, we have laws in place here, AU has even more as well as NZ.
Big challenge there in the UK to control aquatic weeds I'd say.
The public preception of herbicides used for this is a huge stumbling block.
Regards,
Tom Barr